‘Tis the season of the annual work holiday party. And while this tradition is about sharing in a joyful year-end celebration, it’s important to remember that company-sponsored events filled with fun, music, food and drink are still business functions.

To make it a successful social occasion, you need to keep everything in moderation. According to at least one industry survey, 15 per cent of companies that have hosted holiday parties say that inappropriate employee behaviour at the event has affected that individual’s career growth.

Every organization, regardless of its product or service, is vulnerable to employee theft, and it has been estimated that nearly 95 per cent of all companies have experienced some form of this activity.

If that statistic doesn’t shock you, this one should: 20 per cent of every dollar earned by a company is lost to employee theft. In other words, it takes $1.25 in new sales to recover from that theft.

The public has been conditioned to think that conflict-of-interest issues only apply to politicians and other government officials held to high ethical standards. But the truth is that these issues are relevant to every workplace and affect all employers and employees.

Whenever an employee finds themselves in a situation where their interests are at odds with their allegiance to their employer, it is considered a conflict of interest. While most employees will thankfully never engage in bribery or other forms of illegal behaviour for their own personal gain, they may one day come to an ethical crossroads and not know whether to turn left or right because they don’t understand the principles of conflict of interest.